Chronic pain and mortality: a systematic review.
Smith D, Wilkie R, Uthman O, Jordan JL, McBeth J.
PLoS One. 2014 Jun 5;9(6):e99048. doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0099048. eCollection 2014.
Abstract
BACKGROUND: Chronic pain is common, often widespread and has a substantial impact on health and quality of life. The relationship between chronic pain and mortality is unclear. This systematic review aimed to identify and evaluate evidence for a relationship between chronic pain and mortality……CONCLUSION: This review showed a mildly increased risk of death in people with chronic pain, particularly from cancer. However, the small number of studies and methodological differences prevented clear conclusions from being drawn. Consistently applied definitions of chronic pain and further investigation of the role of health, lifestyle, social and psychological factors in future studies will improve understanding of the relationship between chronic pain and mortality.